A Trip to Another Planet--The Mall

LAST SATURDAY, I HAD THE PLEASURE (and I use that word loosely) of accompanying two of my daughters on a trip to the mall. They shamelessly employed blackmail, guilt and force to get me there because they know me. If you know me, you know I despise the mall. The congested, compressed, overly dramatic and overly-priced materialism makes me cringe. Give me a thrift store, a book store or a plant nursery but please, don't make me go to the mall. Okay, fine. I'll go but only because I love my girls and want them to like me. 

I remained silent as they shopped. They didn't need to hear my bitching and moaning. I'd find something to occupy me. Fortunately I found it. 

I couldn't help chuckling. Talk about a throw-back to the 1970s. Check this out:  

A denim shirt dress. Remember? 

Didn't you love this  back in the day?
Maybe still? 

Then I saw this banner. Check the outfits on the models. Is this retro or what? Loose fitting, orange and black shirt with basement-carpet-patterned pants. Are our young people really wearing this or is it savvy marketing? My girls weren't interested so I'd say it's a No and No-er.

Things went from sort of weird to very weird by the time we got to this store. Yes. An enormous, (we're talking 7 foot tall) banner of an alien creature. Upon being resuscitated, my daughter whispered, "Relax Mom, it's only a picture of Nicki Minaj." But she had eyelashes as thick as my arm.  

Farther down, fully acclimated to my surroundings finally, I wasn't too terribly shocked to see this. 

That's right. Four topless (literally) mannequins hanging from the ceiling,

adorned in legging finery and golden feet.  

When it was all said and done (and I was out of patience) my daughters had bought some cute clothes. 

And I got to glimpse a world I'll happily ignore for another 6 months. 

Been to the mall lately? 

On the Lighter Side Part 3

SEVERAL YEARS AGO WHEN I was in therapy, I remember asking my doctor about family dynamics during the 1960s. Specifically, I wanted to know how children were regarded by their parents. Were they loved, nurtured, listened to? Or were they told to shut up and go away? I knew my concept was sullied by my reality. In order to give humanity a fair shake, I needed to wrap my mind around what was normal--how healthy families related to each other.

My doctor told me that although there were exceptions, most families got along well together. Fathers loved their kids and were kind and nurturing. I am still have trouble believing this.

While older people often complain that things aren't like they used to be, I for one think things have improved dramatically in the past few decades. In fact I'll venture to say that it's not just a figment of my imagination that human interaction has improved since those bygone years.

For example, take American advertising. If you've visited Cynthia's Do I Offend? website, you've witnessed the worst that clever advertisers had to offer to their prospective customers. Here's an example:

 

Or how about this one: 

And if things weren't bad enough with the man of the house: 

So see. Things have come a long way. We're more concerned with people's feelings now. If nothing else. Visit Do I Offend? to see further enlightened, or offended. What do you think?

On the Lighter Side

A HEARTY THANK YOU TO all of your for reading and commenting on the passing of "the mother" and my bumpy grieving process. Each and every comment warmed my heart. You're such amazing, kind, compassionate people. You do a girl good. Thank you, a bazillion times! 

In the wake of two very somber posts, I decided we needed to lighten things up this time around. I wasn't sure what I was going to say until this morning when I saw this cartoon on my hubster's page-a-day calendar. 

How inventive is that? Come to think of it, I suppose this isn't much lighter for all the men who might be reading this. Sorry guys. 

Here's hoping you have a splendid July 4th holiday. Smiles and hugs to you all.